I've been looking at the pro carbon too, but probably the SRAM Rival version.

One thing to note is that PX have been doing SRAM deals for quite a while now, whereas this time last year it was all Shimano so I wouldn't be at all surprised if packages and relative prices were to change before long.

I've currently got a pro carbon with dura ace (from about 7 years ago) really love that bike. I spoke to them recently and they said they'd had some probem s with ultegra reliability (but i think the truth is price related, when they get a bargain on a job lot of stuff they then only sell that until they're all out)

I spoke to them recently and they said they'd had some probem s with ultegra reliability (but i think the truth is price related, when they get a bargain on a job lot of stuff they then only sell that until they're all out)

Mate of mine who works in a bike shop has made the same comments about Ultegra and 105. Basic impression is that they've cheapened out on some of the materials in crucial functional parts, hence the drop in reliability. Not helped by the fact that they've had some issues with crud getting into the levers ever since they went to "aero cables".

However, I doubt whether any of the things that affect my choice would affect yours. Which is a very long-winded way of saying the choice is personal and there is no 'better' just a personal basket of pros and cons at each price point.

Which is true, except for one qualifier - that Campag is and always be the best groupset to put on any road style bike!!!

Seriously, your comments are right ... and given that there are always questions coming on the board about whether groupset X or Y is the way to go, I wonder if we can't find some way of building a thread that has a database of user comments on the different gruppos? We'd have to run a rule that it is only observations from users - ie., I don't get to bag SPAM road groupsets for being what I consider to be unreliable, awkwardly designed crap because I've not got them on my bikes.(And to be fair - I have had over 10 years of flawless performance from my X.0 on my MTB ...)

Seriously, your comments are right ... and given that there are always questions coming on the board about whether groupset X or Y is the way to go, I wonder if we can't find some way of building a thread that has a database of user comments on the different gruppos? We'd have to run a rule that it is only observations from users - ie., I don't get to bag SPAM road groupsets for being what I consider to be unreliable, awkwardly designed crap because I've not got them on my bikes.(And to be fair - I have had over 10 years of flawless performance from my X.0 on my MTB ...)

Thoughts??

I'm in favour of this. And that even though it means that I can only praise Campagnolo to the heavens, and say that the cheapest groupset available (in my case, Shimano Sora[1]) isn't the way to go - who knew?

That was what I had on my very first road bike, and even completely inexperienced me noticed the world of difference when I exchanged it (and a wad of cash) for my current bike after less than three months. The upside is that it accustomed me to the Campagnolo shifting mechanism, which of course is the only way a shifting mechanism should ever be designed.

Soft and forgiving but not too soft or forgiving is what I want. Good for gravel and dirt tracks but also good if I want to do a 30 miler once every so often. The Boardman saddle isn't bad, I just fancy a new one which isn't black. Was wondering if anyone had tried the Selle Italia X1 X-Cross or similar rather than the hard as nails racing saddles

Soft and forgiving but not too soft or forgiving is what I want. Good for gravel and dirt tracks but also good if I want to do a 30 miler once every so often. The Boardman saddle isn't bad, I just fancy a new one which isn't black. Was wondering if anyone had tried the Selle Italia X1 X-Cross or similar rather than the hard as nails racing saddles

Oddly enough, I find Selle Italia saddles a bit soft. My Wilier has one and I still haven't gotten quite used to it. I have looked at several models in recent times because of that: I wanted to see if others in the range were the same. They're not.

The Fizik on my Look is definitely the hardest saddle I've ever ridden!

I read somewhere that, to a point (although hopefully not literally), the firmer the saddle the more comfortable it will be. I wonder if that's true.

Got nothing to compare with on real bikes - since I always use relatively firm saddles anyhow (Rolls, Flite or more recently Ritchey WCS are the only saddles I've ever used).

That said, I do find the sofas padded, wide saddles that they put on the spin bikes in the gym at work to be bloody horrible! Takes me nearly half way through my first week of swing before I can ride without cramping my arse ... (Width also makes for chaffed inner thighs...)

I think the best reason to fit mudguards (fenders) is for the sake of one's ride buddies, and I almost always ride solo.

Coming from a part of the world that makes where you live look about as dry as the middle of the Sahara, I'd honestly say that, anyone who thinks that they want to fit mudguards/fenders to their bike, doesn't actually need them.

The reason I say that is that, in a really wet part of the world (like the entire western side of NZ) statistically it rains every second day, year round and you can get days of rain in any month that has a vowel in it' s name.

In that environment, you quickly get to the point where you either have mudguards on year round - which is seriously uncool in summer - or you just get used to getting wet and getting a face full of "Belgian toothpaste" ...And in saying that, my home town was a service town for the dairy industry ... with the expected result in terms of road surfaces where we trained ... so yes, I am fully aware of the potential unpleasantness of riding in a group without mudguards ...

So, I'd say - save the money and put it to something worthwhile - like an upgrade from Chorus to Super Record (mechanical, of course) ...

The only exception that I'd make to that "rule" is one from where I now live.

Mudguards - or I guess I should call them fenders, since I'm talking about Canada - are essential in the snow, on the front wheel at least. A long guard, preferably with a mudflap drastically reduces how much snow, salt, grit and general crud accumulates on your chainrings, cranks and brackets - which stops freeze up and helps to keep the number of chain changes over winter to a minimum. A rear one may stops a bit of accumulation on the frame, which stops the salt attacking the frame.

I want a funky saddle for my black Boardman. Red, grey or white. Comfortable rather than racy so more padding.

It's for short journeys and off-road pootling.

Any suggestions please?

I bought a Sella SMP Lite 109 for my fat ass and love it. I love the comfort that this particular design gives me. Sella has the same design with more padding in other models too. It's definately worth testing. imo

I bought a Sella SMP Lite 109 for my fat ass and love it. I love the comfort that this particular design gives me. Sella has the same design with more padding in other models too. It's definately worth testing. imo